Even a close second could be a bellwether of Republican loss of control of House of Representatives in midterms

Fresh off a wave of successes in November’s off-year elections, Democrats are angling for an audacious victory in a Republican-heavy Tennessee congressional district where an upset win could amount to a major blow against Donald Trump’s legislative agenda.

Voters on Tuesday will cast ballots in a special election to replace Mark Green, a Republican representing a middle Tennessee district who resigned from Congress in July. Drawn by the state’s Republican leaders to ensure its voters favored their party, the district last year backed Trump and Green by 22-point margins.

In normal times, the GOP nominee, Matt Van Epps, would be considered a shoo-in. But after Democrats stormed to victory in Virginia, New Jersey and elsewhere earlier this month – bringing with it evidence that voters who had backed the president were changing their minds – the party and its allies have poured money into the campaign of state representative Aftyn Behn, hoping to pull off what would amount to a coup.